You folks have any favorite, effective recepies? I wanted to spray some of my flowers for the ants and the little thingies that thet seem to herd and take care of, but didn't want to use anything that will harm the bees and humming birds. I've heard of soap and water but don't really know how effective that would be.
Soap and water is my favorite. The little thingies are probably aphids. You don't want them. The ants on the other hand are good in the garden (not in the kitchen). The ants create little tunnel and such. They also herd the aphids onto certain plants, making them easier to kill. Very nice critters they are.
Anyway, here is the recipe I use:
2 tsp dish soap (use a good phosphate free one) 1 liter of water.Mix well and spray directly on bugs. Some people add garlic extract or lemon or orange to the mixture. The soap will suffocate them. The rest sticks around for a while and scares off others from returning.
Jason
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Tolerate the ants and little thingies. Don't kill.
If you use an insecticide, even a fairly benign one, or a "natural" one like pyrethrum, it kills insects. That means bees and other beneficials as well as the harmfuls. Finding out what exactly it is that is causing the problem is a good start. Ants tend to aphids and to mealy bugs, both of which are harmful to plants.
You can try to wash off the bugs and ants, once the bugs are gone the ants will go too. The aphids that are washed off will die as they cannot get back up to the soft shoots etc that they like to suck on. Washing is not too hard with aphids but a few will hang on and breed up again quickly if the conditions are right. Mealy bugs are really hard to wash off. Mealy bugs are really hard to get rid of - pray you don't have them.
You can use an insecticide when the bees are not around, ie after sunset. If you use a contact spray (pyrethrum will kill aphids easily) and don't get it on the bees they will be safe.
David
There are several resources on the topic of sprays here:
Thought I'd see what you cited. You need to change your moniker to "Simplistic".
to look bad.
If it's only one plant, just wipe them off. Use something soft, like tissue, facial or toilet, a piece of cotton, some soft cloth, and just rub gently till they're gone. Check in a couple of days and repeat as necessary. emilie
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